Helena weekly herald. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1867-1900, 1887-06-23
EPITOME OF THE REIGN.
Growth Of the Empire and improvement
of the People.

Growth Of the Empire and Improvement
of the People.
Her majesty's accession was cotemporary
with q rebellion in Canada In the eastern
province, now Quebec, it began with the COM
plants of the French that they did not enjoy
equal rights with the English; there was
much trouble, two or three sharp fights and
some bloodshed. In the western province,
now Ontario, there was demand for popular
election of parliament, with full control of
the finances. and equality among churches i'll
receipt of government. funds; but there a
large majority was loyal, and the rebellion
was treated with contempt by the governor,
Sir Francis Head. Nevertheless there were
dangerous complications with the United
States, owing to the acts of American SYM
pathizers with the insurgents and the de-
struction of the American steamer Caroline,
which the loyal Canadians set loose in the
Niagara and let her run over the Falls. But
all these matters were amicably adjusted,
the Canadians obtained a very liberal
system of government and in 1912 the last
difficulty was removed by the Webster-Ash-
burton treaty defining the exact boundary.
Canada has since made such rapid progress
that all the colonies, from Prince Edward
Island to British Columbia, are now united i'll
confederation, and new nation of 5000, 900
people and nearly 100000 square miles bor-
ders the United States on the north. The
government is a happy combination of the
British and American systems, each prov
ince self governing in local affairs and the
Ottawa parliament over all. The Marquis of
Lansdowne is now governor general and Sir
john Macdonald is head of the government as
premier and leader of the Tory majority in
the house of commons. The ChartistS next
began an agitation for universal manhood
suffrage, parliaments elected yearly, vote by
ballot, no property qualification for the rights
and duties OF citizenship, payment of a salary
to members of parliament and the division OF
the United Kingdom into parliamentary dis
tricts according to population.
Fanatics and impostors multiplied. One
Thorn proclaimed himself the new Messiah
apd had thousands of followers. chiefly i'll
Kent Thom shot dead a policeman who
sought to arrest him. Soldiers came and the
mob attacked them; they fired one volley
and stretched Thorn and many of his adhe-
rents dead. A wild orator named Feargus
OConner infamed the people to madness
Formidable riots occurred at several places
Very many Chartists were prosecuted and im-
prisoned by the government. The European
revolutions of 1913 blew the Chartist excite
ment to fever heat; and monster mass
meeting was called for April 10, 1S4S, on
Kensington common. A hundred thousand
laborers were to assemble and march with a
petition to the house of commons The gov
ernment forbade the meeting; but all London
was i'll a panic. The Duke of Wellington
posted soldiers to protect the public buildings,
and many tboueapd cpacial ctoblac au1
policemen were sworn in. Among those
who volunteered as policemen was Prince
Louis Napoleon Bonaparte, then an exile in
England and soon after to be emperor of the
French. At the last minute the Chartists
yielded, and thereafter their power seemed
to vanish all at once. The best of the meas
ureS they asked for have since become laws in
England.
The Chartist riots, the agitation for the re-
peal of the corn laws and the general move
ment to improve the condition of laborerS
appear to have unsettled many minds; and,
as generally happens in such cases, a spirit of
assassination was excited June TO- 1910,
Edward Oxford, boy of II, fired twice at
the queen as she was out driving with her
husband; the jury pronounced him insane
and ne ended his life in an asylum. Another
attempt ON the queens life was made May
80, 1912. This was by John Francis, young
machinest, and on the very spot where Ok
ford's attempt was made. He fired two shots,
at but few feet distant; but it was set up
on his trial that the pistol was loaded only
with wads. He was found guilty of high
treason and sentenced to death, but the queen
commuted it to imprisonment for life; and on
the very day after the Communication was pub
lished a hunchback named Bean aimed a
pistol at her majesty, but was seized and dis
armed by boy standing near The pistol
was loaded only with paper and fragments of
clay pipe; so Bean escaped with the very
trifing penalty of eighteen months imprison-
ment On May 10, 1s49, an Irish bricklayer
discharged pistol, loaded only with powder,
at the queen, for which he was Transported
for seven years. On May q, 1850. Robert
Pate, who had been discharged from the DO
sition of lieutenant in the Hussars. struck the
queen across the face with cane as she was
entering her carriage; he also received
sentence to seven years transportation. And
finally, on Feb. 20, 1872, I7-year-oid boy,